Mon, June 30, 2014

The right person will: a) possess excellent writing skills (and we mean excellent; an Ivy League or comparable level degree is a must); b) epitomize the word "flexible"; c) thrive under pressure, meet deadlines with aplomb, and exhibit the patience of a saint; d) think creatively about everything; and, most importantly, e) have a YOUTHFUL attitude.

You will be working exclusively with teenagers. Yes, teenagers. Those self-involved, irrational, capricious, and willful creatures. They can be fussy and critical, and sometimes they smell bad. But we love ‘em. And so must you. More importantly, for the purposes of your job, they must like you. A dynamic personality is absolutely required, but you must also be ready, willing, and able to set limits – adolescents can get carried away. You will need to speak to teenagers on their own terms, so unless you are well-versed in current music, movies, fashion, and culture don’t apply for this job! If you don’t know who Grimes is, if you don’t have a healthy text plan, if you wear seasonal sweaters that jingle or sing, if you have never laughed at someone doing something incredibly stupid and/or dangerous on YouTube, this is not the job for you. If you disapprove of tattoos or nose rings or underage… well, everything, this is not the job for you. If you are conservative (with a small "c") or an Adult (with a capital "A"), this is not the job for you. (You can, however, be a mom or a dad.) This job is serious fun for the right person – you get to hang out with some pretty cool kids, and your co-workers aren’t bad either – but for the wrong person, it can be a nightmare.

You don’t just need to be able to write well yourself; you must be able to help others write well, which is much harder than simply having a good knowledge of grammar and sentence structure. Imagine trying to help yet another kid write yet another essay about the big game or grandma or, god help us, the family dog. Now imagine it again. Imagine trying to find unique and inspired ways to answer the question "Why do you want to attend [Insert Name of School Here]?" when your student has no idea why they want to go. Now imagine it again. Imagine having to keep a teenager focused when their friends and Facebook are calling. Literally. Now imagine it again. That’s your job. Got the picture? Oh, and the hours? Also adolescent: you’ll get started at around 2pm and work until 10pm – non-negotiable – June through January. If you just thought, "Crap, I’ll miss The Daily Show, but, on the other hand, Chinese take-out for dinner, dude!" Send us a paragraph or two telling us who you are – we’ll consider it a writing sample. The pay is great, and we’re all cool. Got game?